[b][i]Chapter One, Desperation in Lingayen, Part Ten[/i][/b]

[b]Lingayen Beach, Municipality of Lingayen, Lingayen Gulf - 9/25/2022, 17:40 UTC+8[/b]

The men and women of the Philippine Army and Marines had held on for hours against overwhelming odds, but Tian Fei's terror tactics had broken them - in the face of the avalanching monster, they did not need Qingshe's order to retreat, although it did allow them to save face as they ran for their lives, abandoning weapons, ammunition, and vehicles, but most of them did not leave their wounded comrades behind, but rather carried them on shoulders or stretchers or in their arms rather than treat them like discarded equipment.

But in Lingayen itself, Sergeant Major Cabral had restored order and requested Chaplain Carroman Montenegro to "Provide Emergency Services and heal anyone who is injured and near death; I'll send our last reserves to cover the retreat."

There were a few medics who made no move to leave the remains of the battlefield, stubbornly staying on the beach to stabilize those wounded who couldn’t be moved or couldn’t flee fast enough. One stopped Princess Fuyuko and quickly bandaged up her legs, careful to leave them enough range of movement to run at full tilt. Another stammered quietly as Ari disappeared into Qingshe’s ooze. As the earthen titan bore down, hardly a dozen doctors of war scrambled its path, demonstrating a kind of bravery that some of them might never have dreamed of. One among them briefly glowed, noticed a weapon in his hand that wasn’t there before, and threw it aside to free his hand for his work.

Among the reserves that Sergeant Major Cabral had called for was Marlena Dorn, who was too good for this sinful world, and her bunch of 'Elite German Special Forces' plus their repurposed civilian helicopter. Sergeant Major Cabral sent a message via smartphone to Marlena's band of German Volunteers, asking them to tell the deaf woman through sign language to, "Head for the battlefield and cover the retreat!"

[hr]

Ari had been taken into Qingshe’s mystic shadow to recuperate, but without her, the chances of holding out till nightfall shrank unless she can be given full healing in just a few minutes. Noel Alonso was starting to despair, but ironically, it was Qingshe who had saved him from that by providing a plan. So he shouted into his radio, "Seconded! Each and every one of you, follow Qingshe's plan - Bust holes in that Volcano and do not let the enemy close them up! Not even an A-Rank's energy is unlimited, she'll spread herself thin if she does too much too widely!"

He looked at Nemo, the small child who had been brought to war with him, then said, "Nemo, right? I don't know why a kid like you has been thrown into a war like this, but I want you to be brave, not be afraid, and not despair until the battle is over. Right now, we don't have the time to be friends, but promise me that if we survive, we can be."

Then he turned his face towards Tian Fei's volcano, then spoke in a calm, cool voice, "But for now, stay by my side, hold my wrist, and [i]don't let go[/i]."

The Second Lieutenant heard the rotors of what could possibly be one last helicopter but disregarded it as he waited for Nemo to hold his wrist. Then the two of them vanished as he activated La Luna's Veil of Night, rendering the two of them invisible to mundane and mystic eyes - It covered Nemo now as long as he and Noel held each other. Soon after that, his voice echoed across all comms, "Bust open the volcano! Blow up the entire range of hills to the west if you have to! Once we burst open Tian Fei's shell, it's a free-for-all for whoever shanks her first!"

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